Four Minnesotans, including two future Gophers, will play for the U.S. team in the under-17 World Challenge from Dec. 28-Jan. 4 in Drummondville and Victoriaville, Quebec.

Defenseman Ryan Collins of Bloomington and Jack Glover of Golden Valley were teammates at Benilde-St. Margaret's last season and helped the Red Knights win the Class 2A state title. Now they are teammates on the under-17 national development team in Ann Arbor, Mich., and they and most of the other players on that team made the U.S. roster for the World Challenge.

They also have both committed to the U. So they will play for the Gophers in two, three years.

Among the handful of players added to the U.S. team -- not on the development team -- were forward Austin Poganski of St. Cloud and Keegan Iverson of St. Louis Park.

Poganski plays for St. Cloud Cathedral and earlier this week committed to North Dakota. He is a junior and is averaging about two points per game for his high school team.

Iverson plays for the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League.

The U.S. team has finished second in the 10-team World Challenge the past two years. It is in a group with three team from Canada and Slovakia this year.